Arm-supporter.



1.1. BARTHOLOMEW;

ARM SUiPORTER.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 18. 19l5- 0% l v 9 1 3 2 L P A m w a ,P

JOSEPH J. BARTHOLOMEW, OF CALIFORNIA, OHIO.

ARM-SUPPORTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 23, rare.

Application filed. October 18, 1915. Serial No. 56,398.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH J. BARTHOLO- MEW, a citizen of the United States, and residing at California, in the county of Hamilton and State of Ohio, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Arm-Supporters, of which the following specification is a full disclosure.

My invention relates to an athletic device for preventing strains, or enabling the normal and full use of a strained limb. More particularly, the device, which is in the nature of a jacket, is intended for the use of base ball players, and it has an arm support attached to the body jacket, enabling the wearer to freely use the arm, as in throwing motions, without muscular strains to the arm or shoulder.

Obviously the device is of particular value, say to a pitcher, who is constantly using the full strength of his arm and shoulder muscles, and who generally throws the ball with a full arm swing, particularly taxing on the shoulder muscles and joint.

This jacket may either be normally worn to prevent such troubles, or worn for the purpose of enabling a player to use an injured or weak limb.

The features of the invention will be readily understood from the description of the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and wherein:

The figure is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the invention.

The jacket has a body portion 1, preferably of relatively non-elastic fabric, such as canvas, preferably provided with lacing 2, extending up the middle of the front, and also preferably extending well up to the neck, to a position even with or above the shoulder joint.

There is a sleeve portion 3, preferably of slightly elastic fabric, and also preferably having lacing at the fore arm position. The sleeve is shorter than the arm length, and its upper margin is secured to the armhole margin 5 of the vest-like body portion, by a series of elastic straps '6, which need not necessarily extend clear around the shoulder, but which, as shown, preferably extend over the shoulder joint, from front to rear, covering substantially the same area as the shoulder muscles, and bridging the joint in directions approximately parallel with the run of the shoulder and arm muscles at this portion of the body.

The jacket is donned like a vest, the arm to be used being thrust into the sleeve. The body portion is tightly laced up, the sleeve portion pulled down on the arm to impose slight, or the proper degree of tension on the connecting straps and then the forearm portion is tightly laced to secure the sleeve in proper and comfortable relation to the body and the body portion of the jacket.

The sleeve is not tight above this forearm lacing point, and being of elastic fabric, the forearm may be freely flexed, and all of the arm muscles can freely contract or expand. All muscular movements involving the shoulder joint, will be under the tension influence of the shoulder, and this tension will be exerted in directions reverse to the directions of muscular strains, in whatever manner the arm is exercised, the result being that the arm, and shoulder muscles and joint are assisted in functioning, and the yielding restraint prevents all danger of dislocation or of strains to the muscles and tendons of the arm and shoulder. The body and forearm portions of the jacket resist tension and the device actually functions much as if the natural muscular tissue and joint securance had been physically increased over normal.

Having described my invention, 1 claim 1. An athletic ball throwing truss comprising a sleeveless body garment or vest, an arm sleeve adapted to be tightly fitted to the fore arm, and a series of elastic members, extending over the shoulder joint detachably connecting the sleeve with a shoulder yoke of said garment.

2. An arm truss comprising a sleeveless body garment or vest adapted to be tightly fitted to the body, an arm sleeve adapted to be tightly fitted to the fore arm, and a series of elastic members longitudinally extending over the shoulder joint and connecting the sleeve to the shoulder yoke of said garment.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name, as attested by the two subscribing witnesses.

JOSEPH J. BARTHOLOMEW.

Witnesses:

EMMA PENER, L. A. BECK.

topics of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the (Sommissioner of Patents, Washington, 1). G. 

